Current water-wheel.



' no. 638,!23. Patented Nov. 28, I899.

T. J. INGELS.

CURRENT WATER WHEEL.

(Application filed Mar. 1. 1899.)

2 Sheets-Sheet i.

(No Model.)

No. a3s,|23. Patented Nov. 28, I899.

' T. J. INGELS.

CURRENT WATER WHEEL.

(Application flled'Mar. 1, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets8heet 2.

I r j, 1 I I f Wihjesses TOJIZQ/S 1 3 1 J'lflov ay NITED STATES PATENT FFICE'.

THOMAS J. INGELS, OF ATOHISON, KANSAS.

CURRENT WATER-WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 638,123, dated. November 28, 1899.

Application filed March 1, 1899.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, THOMAS J. INGELS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Atchison, in the county of Atchison and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Gurrent Water-Wheel, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to current water- Wheels, and has for its object to provide a simple and efficient construction and arrangement of parts whereby the position'of the barge or floatin g support may be readily controlled to secure the most effectual application of power to the wheel, the angular position of the barge being variable to suit the 1 direction of current, &c.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of an apparatus constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view thereof. gitudinal section through the same. is a detail view showing the means for adj usting the rudder.

Similar reference characters indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

embodiment of my invention wherein the barge or floating support consists of a platform or deck 10, having laterally-spaced longitudinally-disposed hulls 11, of which the inner sides are straight and parallel to form the walls of a current-passage. The hulls are tapered at their front ends to form'cut-wat-ers; but the bevels forming the tapers are ar-' ranged wholly at the outer sides of the hulls to prevent the gorging of driftwood and floating objects in the throat of the current-pas- Any driftwood which enters said passage may pass readily therethrough without becoming jammed. Located between the planes of the inner sides or walls of the hulls and terminally adjacent to said walls is a water-wheel12, which in connection withan apparatus of large dimensions is of sectional construction, comprising members 12 and 12*, each comprising a drum 13, having one Fig. 3 is a lon- Fig. 4

In the drawings I have shown a preferred Serial No. 707,308. (No model.)

or more terminal rims or guards 14; and intermediate blades which terminate flush with the edges of said rims or guards. The blades 15 of the wheel member 12 are straight, being disposed parallel with the axis of the wheel, while the blades 16 of the member 12 or portions thereof are spirally disposed or set at an angle, whereby the pressure of the current against the spiral blade portions tends to force the stern of the barge outward or in a direction from the bank or shor'e, as indicated in Fig. 1. Connected with the barge at a point in front of the wheel is a main guy line or cable 17, extending to the land and anchored at a suitable point, from which the general position of the barge can be controlled. Also said main guy-cable is preferably attached at the barge end to a capstan 18, by which the position of the barge may be accurately controlled from the barge, the capstan-spindle having ratchet mechanism, by which it may be secured at the desired adj ustment. As this capstan, which forms the means of attachment of the main guy-cable to the barge, is located in front of the transverse line of the wheel, it will be seen that the outward pressure of the water upon the spirally-disposed portions of the wheel-blades will tend to swing the barge outwardly at its rear end upon the capstan-spindle as a center. To utilize this effect and maintain the hulls of the barge in proper alinement with the direction of the current, I employ a rudder-blade 19, the major portion or all of which is located in advance of the center of lateral resistance of the barge and pivotally or hingedly mounted at its front end upon the forward end of the inner hull or that hull which is toward the land, and provide said blade with adjusting devices, such as setscrews 20, which may be operated from the interior of the hull and bear termiuallyagainst the blade to force the rear end thereof outward and maintain the rudderin the desired angular position with relation to the line of the hull. Also the blade may be provided with a guideear 21, extending into a guide opening or way in the outer wall of the hull. By reason of the specified location of the rudder, its point of attachment to the barge, and its inclination, the tendency of the pressure of water against the rudder is to swing the bows of the hulls outward or from the land, and by varying the angular position of the blade this outward tendency may be varied to offer the desired resistance to the outward pressure applied to the stern portions of the hull, and thus maintain the main guy-cable at the desired tension. Furthermore, connected with the barge at its front end is an auxiliary guy-cable 22,

' which is preferably extended somewhat upstream to a point near or on the land, and, like the main cable, over an elevation, to a point of anchorage. The means of connection of said auxiliary guy-cable to the barge in the preferred construction consist of a ring 23 and forwardly-convergent members 24 and 25, of which the former consists of a cablesection, while the latter consists of a rod having a turnbuckle 26 and is connected with an outer or Water side barge. Obviously by adjusting the turnbuckle the position of the barge end of the auxiliary line or cable may be varied transversely with relation to the barge to exert more or less inward strain thereon, and thus more accurately control the position of the barge and insure the efficient application of pressure to the wings or blades of the wheel.

Erected upon the platform or deck of the barge may be any suitable superstructure having, for instance, a roof or cover 27, designed to protect machinery supported by the barge, and any suitable connections may be employed between the shaft of the waterwheel and such supported machinery.

As in the ordinary practice, the main object of the device embodying my invention is to generate electricity to convert the power of the current into a form of energy which may be transmitted to the land or may be utilized at a point adjacent to or on the barge. The means of transmission obviously will vary with the form of energy produced and should be of a suitable flexible construction to allow the proper adjustment of the barge without interrupting the communication of power. Such means of transmission, however, form no part of my present invention, and hence I have deemed it unnecessary to illustrate the same further than diagrammatically, as shown by the conducting-wires 28 in Fig. 1.

From the above description it will be seen that by means of the devices disclosed for controlling the position of the barge the same may be adjusted accurately to suit the direction and force of the current, and the anchorage of the device is wholly from one side of the stream, whereby it is adapted particularly for use in navigable rivers and may be operated withoutinterfering with navigation. Obviously in connection with unnavigable rivers, and particularly those of comparatively small width, variations in the means of anchoring may be made. For instance, the extremities of the guy line or cable may be suitably attached or anchored at points on the opposite banks, with the intermediate portion of the same reeled upon the capstan. When, however, the anchorage of the barge is at only one side of the stream, as indicated in the drawings, the relation between the cables must be such as to insure the accurate alinement of the hulls with the direction of the current, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1, and it will be understood that the turnbuckle 26 may be let out to a greater or less extent to insure the desired position, as hereinbefore indicated.

Various changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details of construction within the scope of the appended claims may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having described my invention, What I claim is 1. The combination of a barge or floating support having parallel laterally-spaced hulls forming an intervening water-passage,a transversely-disposed water- Wheel between the hulls, a guy-line having connection with the barge at a point in advance of the waterwheel, an adjustable rudder arranged at one side of one of the hulls in advance of the center of lateral resistance of the barge for applying outward pressure to the forward end of the barge to maintain said guy line or cable under tension, and means for fixing said rudder when adjusted, substantially as specified.

2. The combination of .a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls form-- ing an intervening water-passage, a water- Wheel arranged transversely in said waterpassage, and having its blades disposed at such angles as to cause an outward pressure upon the adjacent portion of the barge, a guycable having connection with the barge at a point in advance of the water-wheel, and a rudder mounted upon the barge to apply outward pressure to the portion thereof in front of the water-wheel, substantially as specified.

3. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls forming an intervening water-passage, a' waterwheel arranged transversely in said waterpassage, and having its blades disposed at such angles as to cause an outward pressure upon the adjacent portion of the barge, a guycable having connection with the barge in front of the water-wheel and centrally of the width of the barge, and a rudder mounted upon the barge to apply outward pressure to the portion thereof in front of the water-wheel, substantially as specified.

4. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls forming an intervening water-passage, a waterwheel arranged transversely in said waterpassage and having its blades adjacent to one end pitched at an angle or disposed spirally to apply pressure in one direction to the barge, a main guy line or cable having connection with the barge in front of the water-wheel,

and a rudder mounted upon one of the hulls for applying pressure to the barge in a direction opposing that of said spirally-disposed portions of the wheel-blades, substantially as specified.

5. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls forming an intervening water-passage, a waterwheel arranged transversely in said waterpassage and having-its blades adjacent to one end pitched at an angle or disposed spirally to apply pressure in one direction to the barge, a main guy line or cable having connection with the barge in front of the Water-Wheel, a rudder-blade adjustably mounted upon one of the hulls for lateral deflection from the line of the water-passage, and means for securing said rudder-blade at the desired adjustment, substantially as specified.

6. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls, a wator-wheel mounted transversely between the hulls, a capstan arranged in front of the water-wheel, a main guy line or cable connected with the capstan, an adjustable rudder-blade mounted upon one of the hulls, means for securing said rudder-blade at the desired adjustment, and an auxiliary guy line or cable connected with the front end of the barge, substantially as specified.

7. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls, a water-wheel mounted transversely between the hulls, a capstan arranged in front of the Water-wheel, a main guy line or cable connected with the capstan, an adjustable rudder-blade mounted upon one of the hulls, means for securing said rudder-blade at the desired adj ustment, and an auxiliary guy line or cable having an adjustable connection with the front end of the barge, substantially as specifled.

'8. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls, a water-wheel mounted transversely between the hulls, a capstan arranged in front of the Water-wheel, a main guy line or cable connected with the capstan, an adjustable rudder-blade mounted upon one of the hulls, means for securing said rudder-blade at the desired adjustment, anauxiliary guy line or cable, and connections between the same and the barge including forwardly-convergent members connected with the barge adjacent to the front ends, respectively, of the hulls, one of said members beinglongitudinally adjustable,substantially as specified.

9. The combination of a barge or floating support having laterally-spaced hulls, a wator-Wheel mounted transversely between the hulls, a capstan arranged in front of the water-wheel, a main guy line or cable connected with the capstan, an adjustable rudder-blade mounted upon one of the hulls, means for securing said rudder-blade at the desired adjustment, an auxiliary guy line or cable, and means for varying the adjacent end of said cable transversely with relation to the front of the barge, said means including forwardlyconvergent members, of which one consists of a rod having a turnbuckle, substantially as specified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS J. INGELS.

Witnesses:

CHAS. J. OoNLoN, FANN ELSON. 

